Vehicular instrument device and vehicle with vehicular instrument device

ABSTRACT

A vehicular display device that includes a transmissive first liquid crystal display unit having a plurality of display elements; a transmissive second liquid crystal display unit superposed on the first liquid crystal display unit and having a plurality of display elements; and a controller for controlling the display elements of the first second liquid crystal display units, so as to display information required by a driver of the vehicle. The information displayed by the display elements includes at least first information indicative of a status of the vehicle, second information for confirming an operating setting of a vehicle-mounted device on the vehicle, and third information for indication to the driver. The controller controls the display elements to selectively display the information by selectively energizing and de-energizing the display elements, and further controls the display elements to simultaneously display the information in a non-overlapping manner.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a division of U.S. application Ser. No. 12/065,187,filed Aug. 8, 2008, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,932,819, which is a NationalStage entry of International Application No. PCT/JP2006/317416, filedAug. 29, 2006, the entire specifications claims and drawings of whichare incorporated herewith by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a vehicular instrument device havingfirst and second meter cluster panels, which are disposed in aninstrumental panel, and to a vehicle incorporating such a vehicularinstrument device.

The present invention is also concerned with a vehicular display devicehaving a first liquid crystal display unit, a second liquid crystaldisplay unit superposed on the first liquid crystal display unit, and acontroller for controlling the first and second liquid crystal displayunits so as to display information, and to a vehicle incorporating sucha vehicular display device.

BACKGROUND ART

Vehicular instrument devices, which allow a vehicle driver to visuallyrecognize information necessary to drive the vehicle by means of twoinstruments disposed in the instrument panel, are disclosed in JapaneseLaid-Open Patent Publication No. 2000-168400 and Japanese Laid-OpenPatent Publication No. 2002-67735.

Specifically, in the vehicular instrument device disclosed in JapaneseLaid-Open Patent Publication No. 2000-168400, one of the instruments,which displays less urgent information such as information about parkinglots, etc., is positioned in a substantially central area of theinstrument panel, when the driver directs his or her line of sighttoward the forward direction of the vehicle, and the other instrument,which displays more urgent information such as information about vehiclespeed, route guidance for the vehicle and road traffic, is positioned inan area of the instrument panel that is closer to the steering wheelthan the central area thereof.

In the vehicular instrument device disclosed in Japanese Laid-OpenPatent Publication No. 2002-67735, one of the instruments, whichdisplays more frequently viewed information such as information aboutvehicle speed and engine speed, is positioned in a substantially centralarea of the instrument panel, when the driver directs his or her line ofsight toward the forward direction of the vehicle, and the otherinstrument, which displays less frequently viewed information such asinformation about brake malfunctions and battery charging failures, ispositioned in an area of the instrument panel that is viewed inside thesteering wheel.

Another vehicular instrument device disclosed in Japanese Laid-OpenPatent Publication No. 2002-225592 has an instrument and a head-updisplay. The instrument displays information, the importance of whichdoes not change even when the vehicle situation changes, such asinformation about vehicle speed and fuel level, which is positioned in asubstantially central area of the instrument panel, or in an area of theinstrument panel that is viewed inside the steering wheel when thedriver directs his or her line of sight in the forward direction of thevehicle. The head-up display displays information of greater importance,such as warnings for preventing vehicle collisions, in an area of thefront windshield near the instrument panel.

While the driver is driving the vehicle, the driver directs his or herline of sight through the front windshield toward an outside area in theforward direction of the vehicle. At this time, the driver's view coversa certain angular range around the line of sight, including the frontwindshield and a portion of the instrument panel.

With the vehicular display devices disclosed in the above publications,when the driver directs his or her line of sight in the forwarddirection of the vehicle, for example, the display area of theinstrument that displays vehicle speed, which is important and viewedquite frequently by the driver, is viewed either (1) in a substantiallycentral area of the instrument panel located outside of the steeringwheel (Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2000-168400, JapaneseLaid-Open Patent Publication No. 2002-67735, and Japanese Laid-OpenPatent Publication No. 2002-225592), or (2) in an area of the instrumentpanel located inside the steering wheel (Japanese Laid-Open PatentPublication No. 2002-225592).

In order to observe the displayed vehicle speed, the driver must movehis or her head vertically and horizontally about the neck, in order tomove the line of sight from the exterior area toward the display area ofthe instrument. If the display area of the instrument is viewed in asubstantially central area of the instrument panel, then since the lineof sight moves a greater distance horizontally than vertically, movementof the line of sight also requires a longer period of time when movinghorizontally than when moving vertically. If the display area of theinstrument is viewed in the area of the instrument panel inside thesteering wheel, then the driver must move his or her line of sight by alarge vertical distance.

Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 11-352943 and JapaneseLaid-Open Patent Publication No. 2000-108722 disclose vehicular displaydevices having a first liquid crystal display unit, and a second liquidcrystal display unit superposed on the first liquid crystal displayunit. The first and second liquid crystal display units displayinformation about vehicle speed, etc., for the driver to visuallyrecognize.

In the vehicular display device disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open PatentPublication No. 11-352943, the first liquid crystal display unitdisplays vehicle speed, while the second liquid crystal display unitsuperposed on the first liquid crystal display unit displays vehiclespeed in a superposed relation to the vehicle speed displayed by thefirst liquid crystal display unit. In the vehicular display devicedisclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2000-108722, thefirst liquid crystal display unit displays route guidance informationfor the driver as well as the temperature outside of the vehicle, whilethe second liquid crystal display unit superposed on the first liquidcrystal display unit forms a speedometer, comprising an arcuate array ofdisplay segments simulating an analog pointer, for displaying vehiclespeed.

With the above vehicular display devices, various items of informationrequired by the driver must be displayed by a plurality of displayelements, which are disposed in the first liquid crystal display unitand the second liquid crystal display unit respectively.

The vehicular display devices of Japanese Laid-Open Patent PublicationNo. 11-352943 and Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2000-108722simultaneously display many items of information through the displayelements. For allowing the driver to visually recognize such variousitems of information, the liquid crystal display units must be large insize and contain many display elements. As a result, each time thevarious items of information are displayed, the driver needs to move hisor her line of sight in order to view the displayed information.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide a vehicularinstrument device, which reduces movement of the line of sight of thedriver, as well as a vehicle incorporating such a vehicular instrumentdevice. A further object of the present invention is to provide avehicular display device, as well as a vehicle incorporating such avehicular display device.

According to an aspect of the present invention, the vehicularinstrument device comprises a first meter cluster panel for displayinginformation that is visually recognizable within a predetermined angularfield of vision outside of a steering wheel of the vehicle, when adriver of the vehicle directs a line of sight in a forward direction ofthe vehicle from an eye range of the driver, and a second meter clusterpanel for displaying information that is visually recognizable withinthe predetermined angular field of vision inside the steering wheel, thefirst meter cluster panel and the second meter cluster panel beingdisposed on an instrument panel of the vehicle, wherein the first metercluster panel is included in the instrument panel near a boundary linebetween the instrument panel and a front windshield of the vehicle, at aposition deeper than the second meter cluster panel as viewed from theperspective of the driver, and wherein the first meter cluster panel andthe second meter cluster panel have respective centers of display, thecenter of display of the first meter cluster panel and the center ofdisplay of the second meter cluster panel being aligned along alongitudinal direction of the vehicle.

With the above arrangement, since the center of display of the firstmeter cluster panel and the center of display of the second metercluster panel are disposed coaxially in the longitudinal direction ofthe vehicle, the driver is required to move his or her line of sightonly vertically. Since the first meter cluster panel is disposed nearthe boundary line, at a position deeper than the second meter clusterpanel as viewed from the perspective of the driver, and the informationdisplayed by the first meter cluster panel is visually recognizedoutside of the steering wheel, the driver directing his or her line ofsight toward an exterior area outside of the vehicle in the forwarddirection through the front windshield finds it easy to focus on theinformation displayed by the first meter cluster panel. According to thepresent invention, the movement of the line of sight of the driver issmaller than with conventional vehicular instrument devices. The centerof display of the first meter cluster panel refers to the center of adisplay surface of the first meter cluster panel, and the center ofdisplay of the second meter cluster panel refers to the center of adisplay surface of the second meter cluster panel.

Preferably, the vehicle has an axis passing through the center ofdisplay of the first meter cluster panel and an axis passing through thecenter of display of the second meter cluster panel, and the steeringwheel is steerable by the driver and supported by a steering shafthaving a central axis, wherein the axes of the vehicle and the centralaxis of the steering shaft are substantially parallel to each other whenviewed from above. In particular, the vehicle has a seat on which thedriver is seated, the seat having a seat center, wherein the seatcenter, the central axis of the steering shaft, the center of display ofthe first meter cluster panel and the center of display of the secondmeter cluster panel are aligned along a longitudinal direction of thevehicle. The driver can therefore drive the vehicle in a natural drivingposture, and movement of the line of sight of the driver can further bereduced. The seat center refers to the center of the seat on which thedriver is seated.

The first meter cluster panel and the second meter cluster panel displayinformation of high and low visually recognized frequencies, which isclassified based on the frequency at which such information is visuallyrecognized by the driver while the driver operates the vehicle.Preferably, the first meter cluster panel displays information of highvisually recognized frequency. Information of high visually recognizedfrequency, which is displayed by the first meter cluster panel,comprises at least vehicle speed, wherein the first meter cluster paneldisplays the vehicle speed digitally. The driver can thus visuallyrecognize vehicle speed in a short period of time.

Preferably, the first meter cluster panel has a display surface havingan upper end, which is shaped along an image of the steering wheel, asprojected from the eye range onto the instrument panel. More preferably,the first meter cluster panel has a display surface having a verticalheight which is smaller than the vertical height of a display surface ofthe second meter cluster panel. Therefore, the driver obtains a maximumfield of vision with respect to the exterior area outside the vehicle.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a vehiculardisplay device is provided, comprising a transmissive first liquidcrystal display unit having a plurality of display elements, atransmissive second liquid crystal display unit superposed on the firstliquid crystal display unit and having a plurality of display elements,and a controller for controlling the display elements of the firstliquid crystal display unit and the display elements of the secondliquid crystal display unit, so as to display information required bythe driver, wherein the information displayed by the display elementscomprises at least first information indicative of a status of thevehicle, second information for confirming an operating setting of avehicle-mounted device, and third information for indication to thedriver, wherein the controller controls the display elements toselectively display the information by selectively energizing andde-energizing the display elements, and further controls the displayelements to simultaneously display the information in a non-overlappingmanner.

With the above arrangement, the first information, and the secondinformation or the third information, can be simultaneously displayedwithout overlapping each other. Even when various items of informationare displayed, the line of sight of the driver is moved only arelatively small distance.

The first information comprises information indicative of a status ofthe vehicle, such as vehicle speed. The second information comprisesinformation for confirming operational settings of a vehicle-mounteddevice (i.e., whether the vehicle-mounted device is in operation or not)that controls the vehicle so as to cruise while keeping a predetermineddistance between the vehicle and a preceding vehicle. The thirdinformation comprises information indicating to the driver that thevehicle is approaching the preceding vehicle.

The display element of the first liquid crystal display unit and thedisplay element of the second liquid crystal display unit haverespective different sizes for displaying the first information. Whilethe first information is being displayed by the display element ofeither one of the first liquid crystal display unit and the secondliquid crystal display unit, when the second information or the thirdinformation is displayed by the display element of the other one of thefirst liquid crystal display unit and the second liquid crystal displayunit, the controller controls the display elements so as to display thefirst information on the display element of the other liquid crystaldisplay unit, wherein the display element of the other liquid crystaldisplay unit for displaying the first information is smaller in sizethan the display element of the one liquid crystal display unit fordisplaying the first information. With this arrangement, the displayelements can be arranged in the first and second liquid crystal displayunits, in order to display the first, second, and third information,without increasing the liquid crystal display sizes of the first liquidcrystal display unit and the second liquid crystal display unit.

When the first information, and the second information or the thirdinformation, are simultaneously displayed by the first liquid crystaldisplay unit and the second liquid crystal display unit, the controllerpreferably controls the display elements to display the information nextto each other, as viewed by the driver. Thus, the movement of the lineof sight of the driver can further be reduced.

The vehicular instrument device and the vehicular display device, asdescribed above, can be incorporated in a vehicle.

Any of the vehicular instrument device, the vehicle incorporating thevehicular instrument device therein, the vehicular display device, andthe vehicle incorporating the vehicular display device therein, iseffective at reducing movement of the line of sight of the driver.

The above and other objects, features, and advantages of the presentinvention shall become more apparent from the following descriptions,when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in whichpreferred embodiments of the present invention are shown by way ofillustrative example.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of a vehicular instrument deviceaccording to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view showing a layout of the vehicularinstrument device shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing the layout of the vehicular instrumentdevice shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a table showing a relationship between items of informationrequired by the driver and respective frequencies at which the items ofinformation are viewed;

FIG. 5 is a graph showing a relationship between visual distances andvisual acuity of the driver;

FIG. 6A is a side elevational view of a vehicular instrument deviceaccording to a comparative example;

FIG. 6B is a front elevational view of the vehicular instrument devicein accordance with the comparative example;

FIG. 7 is a front elevational view of the vehicular instrument device,showing manners in which the line of sight of the driver moves, and thefield of vision of the driver changes;

FIG. 8 is a front elevational view of the vehicular instrument device,showing a momentary field of vision of a driver looking in the forwarddirection of the vehicle;

FIG. 9 is a front elevational view of a vehicular display deviceaccording to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 10A is a front elevational view of a first liquid crystal displayunit of the vehicular display device shown in FIG. 9;

FIG. 10B is a front elevational view of a second liquid crystal displayunit of the vehicular display device shown in FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XI-XI of FIG. 9;

FIG. 12A is a front elevational view of a display pattern, whichdisplays vehicle speed only;

FIG. 12B is a front elevational view of a display pattern, whichdisplays information prompting the driver to brake the vehicle; and

FIG. 12C is a front elevational view of a display pattern, whichdisplays information indicating an operational state of avehicle-mounted device (IHCC) for controlling the vehicle to cruisewhile keeping a predetermined distance from a preceding vehicle.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

A vehicular instrument device 10 according to an embodiment of thepresent invention, and a vehicle 11 incorporating the vehicularinstrument device 10, shall first be described below with reference toFIGS. 1 through 8.

FIG. 1 shows, in front elevation, the vehicular instrument device 10,which is incorporated in the vehicle 11 according to the embodiment ofthe present invention. FIG. 2 shows a side elevation of the vehicle 11,illustrating the layout of a first meter cluster panel 16 and a secondmeter cluster panel 18 of the vehicular instrument device 10. FIG. 3shows a plan view of the vehicle 11, illustrating the layout of asteering wheel 12, the first meter cluster panel 16, and the secondmeter cluster panel 18.

As shown in FIGS. 1 through 3, the first meter cluster panel 16 and thesecond meter cluster panel 18 are disposed in an instrument panel 14.

As shown in FIG. 1, the first meter cluster panel 16 is an instrumentfor displaying various items of information digitally. The first metercluster panel 16 includes a speedometer 22 for displaying vehicle speedof the vehicle 11, a coolant temperature gauge 24 for displayingtemperature of the coolant in the engine (not shown) of the vehicle 11,a fuel gauge 26 for displaying the level of fuel in the fuel tank (notshown) of the vehicle 11, and turn signal lamps 20 a, 20 b fordisplaying right and left turn signals of the vehicle 11. Thespeedometer 22 is disposed at a center portion 19 (represented by acircular blank dot in FIG. 1) of the display of the first meter clusterpanel 16. The fuel gauge 26 is disposed on the right side of thespeedometer 22, and the coolant temperature gauge 24 is disposed on theleft side of the speedometer 22. The turn signal lamps 20 a, 20 b aredisposed respectively on left and right sides of the speedometer 22.

The second meter cluster panel 18 comprises a tachometer 30 fordisplaying engine rotational speed of the vehicle 11 as analogindications, a shift indicator 32 for displaying the speed reductionratio of the transmission (not shown) of the vehicle 11, an odometer andtrip meter 34 for displaying the mileage of the vehicle 11, and atemperature gauge 36 for displaying the temperature outside of thevehicle 11. The tachometer 30 is disposed at a center portion 21(represented by a circular blank dot in FIG. 1) of the display of thesecond meter cluster panel 18. The odometer and trip meter 34 and thetemperature gauge 36 are disposed in juxtaposed relation to each otherbelow the tachometer 30. The shift indicator 32 is disposed on the rightside of the tachometer 30.

As indicated by the circular blank dot, the center of display 19 of thefirst meter cluster panel 16 refers to the center of the display surfaceof the first meter cluster panel 16. As indicated by the circular blankdot, the center of display 21 of the second meter cluster panel 18refers to the center of the display surface of the second meter clusterpanel 18. The display surface of the first meter cluster panel 16 refersto a panel 17 on which the turn signal lamps 20 a, 20 b, the speedometer22, the coolant temperature gauge 24, and the fuel gauge 26 aredisposed. The display surface of the second meter cluster panel 18refers to a panel 38 on which the tachometer 30, the shift indicator 32,the odometer and trip meter 34, and the temperature gauge 36 aredisposed.

The height of the panel 17 of the first meter cluster panel 16, asmeasured in the vertical direction as shown in FIG. 1, is smaller thanthe height of the panel 38 of the second meter cluster panel 18.

As shown in FIG. 2, the first meter cluster panel 16 and the secondmeter cluster panel 18 are disposed below a V2 line 42 extendingforwardly from a V2 point 40. The V2 line 42 represents a line of sightof a driver 48 from the V2 point 40, and the first meter cluster panel16, the second meter cluster panel 18, and other vehicle-mounted devicesare not disposed above the V2 line 42. The V2 line 42 thus refers to areference line along which the frontal field of vision of all drivers 48is not affected.

As shown in FIGS. 1 through 3, when the driver 48 who is seated on aseat 46 directs his or her line of sight 49 in the forward direction(indicated by the arrow X1) of the vehicle 11 from an eye range 37 ofthe driver, the first meter cluster panel 16 is visually recognized inan area of the instrument panel 14 outside of the steering wheel 12. Thefirst meter cluster panel 16 as viewed from the perspective of thedriver 48 is disposed near a boundary line 45 between the instrumentpanel 14 and the front windshield 44 and is included within theinstrument panel 14.

Indications on the first meter cluster panel 16, i.e., indications ofthe speedometer 22, the fuel gauge 26, the coolant temperature gauge 24,and the turn signal lamps 20 a, 20 b, can thus be visually recognizedoutside of the steering wheel 12, within a predetermined and certainangular range of view of the driver 48.

When the driver 48 directs his or her line of sight 49 in the forwarddirection (indicated by the arrow X1) of the vehicle 11 from the eyerange 37, the second meter cluster panel 18 is disposed in an area ofthe instrument panel 14 that lies inside the steering wheel 12. At thistime, indications on the second meter cluster panel 18, i.e.,indications of the tachometer 30, the shift indicator 32, the odometerand trip meter 34, and the temperature gauge 36, can be visuallyrecognized inside the steering wheel 12, within a predetermined andcertain angular range of view of the driver 48.

The eye range 37 shown in FIG. 2 refers to a range in which the eyes 47of all drivers 48 who are seated on the seat 46 are positioned and arecapable of visually observing an exterior area in the forward directionof the vehicle, when the line of sight 49 is directed in the forwarddirection of the vehicle 11, as indicated by the arrow X0, through thefront windshield 44.

As shown in FIG. 1, the center of display 19 of the first meter clusterpanel 16, the center of display 21 of the second meter cluster panel 18,and the center of the steering wheel 12 are positioned on a commonvertical axis 39. As shown in FIG. 3, the center of display 19 of thefirst meter cluster panel 16, the center of display 21 of the secondmeter cluster panel 18, the center of the steering wheel 12, and thecenter of the seat 46 are positioned along a central axis 52 of thesteering shaft 53, which supports the steering wheel 12 that is turnedby the driver 48.

The central axis 52 extends parallel to the longitudinal direction ofthe vehicle 11, as indicated by the arrows X1, X2 in FIG. 3. Therefore,when view from above, the center of the steering wheel 12, the center ofdisplay 19 of the first meter cluster panel 16, the center of display 21of the second meter cluster panel 18, and the center of the seat 46(seat center) are disposed on the central axis 52, along thelongitudinal direction of the vehicle 11 indicated by the arrows X1, X2in FIG. 3.

As shown in FIG. 1, an upper end of the panel 17 of the first metercluster panel 16, and a region of the instrument panel 14 near the upperend of the panel 17, are arcuate in shape along an image of the steeringwheel 12 that is projected from the eye range 37 (see FIG. 2) onto theinstrument panel 14.

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of the vehicular instrument device 10as viewed by the driver 48 (see FIG. 2) when the line of sight 49 isdirected from the eyes 47 of the driver 48, within the eye range 37, inthe forward direction (indicated by the arrow X1) of the vehicle 11.Therefore, the steering wheel 12, rather than the projected image of thesteering wheel 12, is shown as being superposed on the instrument panel14.

The vehicular instrument device 10 according to the present embodiment,and the vehicle 11 incorporating the vehicular instrument device 10, arebasically constructed as described above. Advantages of the vehicularinstrument device 10, as well as those of the vehicle 11, shall bedescribed below with reference to FIGS. 1 through 8.

First, indications produced by the first meter cluster panel 16 and thesecond meter cluster panel 18, in order to allow the driver 48 (seeFIGS. 2 and 3) to visually recognize required information appropriately,shall be described below with reference to FIGS. 1 through 4.

The first meter cluster panel 16 and the second meter cluster panel 18display various items of information on the panels (display surfaces)17, 38 thereof based on the frequency at which the information requiredby the driver 48 is visually recognized, while the driver 48 operatesthe vehicle 11.

FIG. 4 is a table showing the relationship between various meters thatdisplay items of information required by the driver 48 while the driver48 drives the vehicle 11, and frequencies at which the meters arevisually recognized by the driver 48.

In the table shown in FIG. 4, meters that are visually recognized by thedriver 48 include, in a descending order of their visually recognizedfrequencies, the speedometer 22 (visually recognized frequency: 64%)(see FIG. 1), the tachometer 30 (15%), the odometer and trip meter 34(10′a), the fuel gauge 26 (5%), the shift indicator 32 (AT indicator andparking indicator, 3%), the coolant temperature gauge 24 (1%), and theturn signal lamps 20 a, 20 b (turn indicators, 1%).

The items of information required by the driver include, in a descendingorder of their visually recognized frequencies, (1) the speed of thevehicle 11 (speedometer 22), (2) the rotational speed of the engine(tachometer 30), (3) the mileage of the vehicle 11 (odometer and tripmeter 34), (4) the level of fuel in the fuel tank (fuel gauge 26), (5)the speed reduction ratio (shift indicator 32), (6) the coolanttemperature (coolant temperature gauge 24), and (7) right and left turnindicators of the vehicle 11 (turn signal lamps 20 a, 20 b).

Therefore, if the items of information are assigned successively to thepanel 17 of the first meter cluster panel 16 and to the panel 38 of thesecond meter cluster panel 18 in a descending order of their visuallyrecognized frequencies, the items of information required by the driver48 are appropriately displayed for the driver 48 so as to facilitatevisual recognition thereof.

In FIG. 1, when the driver 48 (see FIGS. 2 and 3) directs his or herline of sight 49 in the forward direction (indicated by the arrow XI) ofthe vehicle 11, (1) the vehicle speed of the vehicle 11 which is of thehighest visually recognized frequency is displayed by the speedometer 22at the center of display 19 of the first meter cluster panel 16 which isdisposed near the line of sight 49, (4) the fuel level in the fuel tankis displayed on the right side of the center of display 19 by the fuelgauge 26, (6) the coolant temperature is displayed on the left side ofthe center of display 19 by the coolant temperature gauge 24, and (7)the indications of right and left turns of the vehicle 11 are displayednear the center of display 19 by the turn signal lamps 20 a, 20 b.

The above items of information displayed by the first meter clusterpanel 16 are displayed digitally. Therefore, the driver 48 canseparately distinguish the displayed items of information in a shortperiod of time. Since the speed of the vehicle 11, which has the highestvisually recognized frequency, is displayed at the center of display 19of the first meter cluster panel 16, the driver 48, who is directing hisor her line of sight 49 in the forward direction (indicated by the arrowX1) of the vehicle 11, can instantaneously observe and recognize thevehicle speed.

On the other hand, (2) the engine rotational speed, which has the secondhighest visually recognized frequency, is displayed at the center ofdisplay 21 of the second meter cluster panel 18 by the tachometer 30,whereas (3) the mileage of the vehicle 11 is displayed below the centerof display 21 by the odometer and trip meter 34, and (5) thetransmission speed reduction ratio is displayed to the right of thecenter of display 21 by the shift indicator 32.

Since engine rotational speed, which is of the second highest visuallyrecognized frequency, is displayed at the center of display 21 of thesecond meter cluster panel 18, the driver 48 directing his or her lineof sight 49 in the forward direction (indicated by the arrow X1) of thevehicle 11 can visually recognize the engine rotational speed in a shortperiod of time, by moving his or her line of sight 49 downwardly.

The first meter cluster panel 16 is disposed at a position that caneasily be focused on by the driver 48, as described below with referenceto FIGS. 1 through 3 and 5.

FIG. 5 is a graph showing the relationship between visual distances andvisual acuity of the driver 48 (see FIGS. 2 and 3) who drives thevehicle 11. If the visual distances of all drivers 48 seated on the seat46 are 1 m or more, then such drivers 48 can appropriately visuallyrecognize the information required to drive the vehicle 11.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the first meter cluster panel 16, whichdisplays vehicle speed having the highest visually recognized frequency,is disposed in front of the second meter cluster panel 18 in thedirection indicated by the arrow XI. Therefore, if the first metercluster panel 16 is spaced 1 m or more from the eyes 47 of the driver48, then the driver 48 who drives the vehicle 11 can easily focus on thefirst meter cluster panel 16. As a result, the driver 48 can reliablyvisually recognize the information of high visually recognizedfrequency, such as the vehicle speed.

The vehicular instrument device 10 according to the present embodimentenables the line of sight 49 of the driver 48 to be moved less than thevehicular instrument device 51, according to a comparative example, asdescribed below with reference to FIGS. 1 through 3 and 6A through 8.The vehicular instrument device 51 according to the comparative exampleis a conventional vehicular instrument device, which is shown in FIGS.6A and 6B as having instruments 54 and 57.

FIG. 6A shows, in side elevation, the manner in which the line of sight49 moves when the driver 48 views the vehicular instrument device 51.FIG. 6B shows, in front elevation, the manner in which the line of sight49 moves when the driver 48 views the instruments 54 and 57, as well asthe changes in fields of vision 56, 58 when the line of sight 49 moves.

With the vehicular instrument device 51 according to the comparativeexample, as shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B, when the line of sight 49 isdirected in the forward direction (indicated by the arrow X1) of thevehicle 11 from the eye range 37 of the driver 48, the instrument 54 isviewed within the field of vision 58 inside the steering wheel 12,whereas the instrument 57 is viewed in a central area of the instrumentpanel 14 outside of the steering wheel 12. The instrument 54 has acentral axis 55 that is offset from a central axis 59 of the steeringwheel 12 toward the central area of the instrument panel 14.

In order for the driver 48, who is seated on the seat 46, to seeinformation such as vehicle speed displayed on the instruments 54, 57,the driver 48 must move his or her head vertically and horizontallyabout the neck, in order to change the line of sight 49 from theexterior area in the forward direction (indicated by the arrow X1) ofthe vehicle toward the instruments 54, 57.

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 6A, when the driver 48 moves his or herline of sight 49, which has been directed to the exterior area throughthe front windshield 44, downwardly toward the instrument 54 in order toview information, e.g., the vehicle speed, displayed on the instrument54, then as shown in FIG. 6B, the field of vision of the driver 48 isreduced from the range indicated by 58 to the range indicated by 56. Asa result, the field of vision within which the driver 48 viewing theinstrument 54 can see the exterior area through the front windshield 44is reduced to a field of vision 61 near the boundary line 45, which isdefined by the dot-and-dash line representing the field of vision 56 andthe solid line representing the frame of the front windshield 44.

Therefore, the driver 48, when viewing the instrument 54, is unable tohave a sufficiently large field of vision with respect to the exteriorarea, and hence may find it difficult to recognize, in a short period oftime, persons and objects that are present in the forward direction(indicated by the arrow X1) of the vehicle 11. In this case, the driver48 needs to move his or her line of sight 49 downwardly by a largedistance, from the central area of the front windshield 44 toward theinstrument 54. Since the central axis 55 of the instrument 54 is offsetfrom the central axis 59 of the steering wheel 12, the driver 48 seatedon the seat 46 also is forced to drive the vehicle 11 while being keptin an unnatural driving posture.

When the driver 48 moves his or her line of sight 49, which has beendirected at the center of display 63 of the instrument 54, toward theinstrument 57 (see FIG. 6B) positioned to the left of the instrument 54in order to view the information displayed on the instrument 57, sincethe line of sight 49 moves a greater distance horizontally thanvertically, a longer period of time is required for the line of sight 49to move horizontally than vertically.

The driver 48 is thus unable to have a proper field of vision of theexterior area, and must move his or her line of vision 49 over greatdistances. Further, since the instrument 57 is disposed in the centralarea of the instrument panel 14, the driver 48 seated on the seat 46 isforced to drive the vehicle 11 while being kept in an unnatural drivingposture.

When the driver 48 moves his or her line of sight 49, which has beendirected at the center of display 64 of the instrument 57, toward anobliquely upward position on the front windshield 44 (see FIGS. 6A and6B), the driver 48 can obtain a proper field of vision of the exteriorarea, but needs to move the line of sight 49 a great distance.

With the vehicular instrument device 10 according to the presentembodiment, as shown in FIGS. 1 through 3 and 7, the center of display19 of the first meter cluster panel 16, the center of display 21 of thesecond meter cluster panel 18, the center of the steering wheel 12, thecenter of the steering shaft 53, and the center of the seat 46 (seatcenter) are coaxially positioned on the axis 39 and along the centralaxis 52. Consequently, when the driver 48 directs his or her line ofsight 49 from the exterior area in the forward direction (indicated bythe arrow X1) of the vehicle 11 toward the first meter cluster panel 16,the line of sight 49 moves only vertically. Therefore, the distance thatthe line of sight 49 moves is much smaller than with the vehicularinstrument device 51 according to the comparative example (see FIGS. 6Aand 6B).

Furthermore, the first meter cluster panel 16 that displays the speed ofthe vehicle 11, and which is of the highest visually recognizedfrequency, is disposed near the boundary line 45 at a position deeperthan that of the second meter cluster panel 18 as viewed from the eyerange 37 (see FIG. 2). Therefore, the vehicular instrument device 10according to the present embodiment permits the driver 48 to focus moreeasily on the display surface (panel 17) of the first meter clusterpanel 16 than with the vehicular instrument device 51 according to thecomparative example. Consequently, the driver 48 can appropriatelyvisually recognize the displayed information such as vehicle speed, etc.

As described above, inasmuch as the center of display 19 of the firstmeter cluster panel 16, the center of display 21 of the second metercluster panel 18, the center of the steering wheel 12, the center of thesteering shaft 53 (see FIG. 3), and the center of the seat 46 (seatcenter) are coaxially positioned on the axis 39 and along the centralaxis 52, the driver 48 can drive the vehicle 11 while seated in anatural driving posture observing the first meter cluster panel 16 andthe second meter cluster panel 18.

When the driver 48 (see FIGS. 2 and 3) directs his or her line of sight49 toward the center of display 19 of the first meter cluster panel 16,a field of vision 66, in which the driver 48 can see the exterior areathrough the front windshield 44, and lying inside the field of vision56, i.e., a range defined by the dot-and-dash line representing thefield of vision 56 and the solid line representing the boundary line 45,as shown in FIG. 7, is established. The established field of vision 66is wider than the field of vision 61 in which the driver 48 (see FIG.6A) sees the exterior area when directing his or her line of sight 49toward the instrument 54 of the vehicular instrument device 51 accordingto the comparative example, i.e., a range defined by the dot-and-dashline representing the field of vision 56 and the solid line representingthe boundary line 45, as shown in FIG. 6B.

Therefore, as shown in FIG. 8, the vehicular instrument device 10according to the present embodiment allows the driver 48 toappropriately visually recognize activities in the exterior area as wellas indications on the first meter cluster panel 16, within a field ofvision 60 (momentary field of vision) in which the driver 48 canmomentarily judge activities in the exterior area in fields of vision56, 58, while also generally recognizing the indications on the secondmeter cluster panel 18 within the field of vision 56. The driver 48 canthus instantaneously recognize objects, e.g., pedestrians 62, that arepresent in the forward direction (indicated by the arrow X1 in FIGS. 2and 3) while viewing the exterior area as well as the first metercluster panel 16, and thus can quickly control the vehicle 11 in view ofthe presence of pedestrians 62.

The upper end of the panel 17 of the first meter cluster panel 16 isarcuate in shape along an image of the steering wheel 12 that isprojected onto the instrument panel 14 when the driver 48 directs his orher line of sight 49 in the forward direction (indicated by the arrowX1) from the eye range 37 (see FIG. 2). The height of the panel 17 ofthe first meter cluster panel 16, as measured in the vertical directionin FIG. 1, is smaller than the height of the panel 38 of the secondmeter cluster panel 18.

Therefore, the driver 48 obtains a maximum field of vision with respectto the exterior area near the boundary line 45 of the front windshield44.

With the vehicular instrument device 10 according to the presentembodiment, and the vehicle 11 incorporating the vehicular instrumentdevice 10, as described above, the line of sight of the driver 48 movesonly vertically because the center of display 19 of the first metercluster panel 16 and the center of display 21 of the second metercluster panel 18 are disposed substantially coaxially with each other.Since the first meter cluster panel 16 is disposed at a position that isdeeper than that of the second meter cluster panel 18 near the boundaryline 45, and the indications on the first meter cluster panel 16 arevisually recognized outside of the steering wheel 12, the driver 48 whodirects his or her line of sight 49 toward the exterior area in theforward direction (indicated by the arrow X1) through the frontwindshield 44 can also easily focus on the display surface (panel 17) ofthe first meter cluster panel 16. Therefore, the vehicular instrumentdevice 10 and the vehicle 11 according to the present embodiment enablethe line of sight 49 of the driver 48 to be moved a smaller distancethan in the case of the vehicular instrument device 51 according to thecomparative example.

Next, a vehicular display device 114 according to an embodiment of thepresent invention, as well as a vehicle 110 incorporating the vehiculardisplay device 114, shall be described below with reference to FIGS. 9through 12C.

FIG. 9 shows, in front elevation, the vehicular display device 114 (alsoreferred to as “first meter cluster panel 114”) incorporated in thevehicle 110 according to the present embodiment. FIGS. 10A and 10B show,in front elevation, the display surfaces of a first liquid crystaldisplay unit 118 a and a second liquid crystal display unit 118 b,respectively, of the first meter cluster panel 114. FIG. 11 is across-sectional view of the first meter cluster panel 114 shown in FIG.9, taken along line XI-XI of FIG. 9. FIGS. 12A through 12C show, infront elevation, display patterns on the first meter cluster panel 114.

As shown in FIG. 9, the first meter cluster panel 114 is disposed on anupper portion of an instrument panel 112 and outside of the steeringwheel 143 as viewed by the driver of the vehicle 110 (not shown). Asshown in FIGS. 10A through 11, the first meter cluster panel 114comprises a planar first liquid crystal display unit 118 a, and a planarsecond liquid crystal display unit 118 b that is superposed on the firstliquid crystal display unit 118 a.

The first liquid crystal display unit 118 a is disposed closer to thedriver, and comprises, as shown in FIG. 10A, a display element 116positioned centrally in the first liquid crystal display unit 118 a, anda display element 120 disposed on the left side of the display element116. The display element 116 displays the speed of the vehicle 110. Thedisplay element 120 displays information for indicating to the driver ofthe vehicle 110 that the vehicle 110 is approaching a preceding vehicle,which is driven in front of the vehicle 110.

Specifically, the vehicle 110 incorporates therein a vehicle-mounteddevice (hereinafter referred to as an “IHCC (Intelligent Highway CruiseControl) system” for controlling the vehicle 110 to cruise, whilemaintaining a predetermined distance between the vehicle 110 and thepreceding vehicle. The IHCC system detects, using radar, the actualvehicle-to-vehicle distance between the vehicle 110 and the precedingvehicle, and outputs various items of information, indicating that thevehicle 110 is approaching the preceding vehicle, to the first metercluster panel 114 when the detected actual vehicle-to-vehicle distanceis shorter than a vehicle-to-vehicle distance preset in the IHCC system.

In FIG. 10A, the display element 120 displays a message “BRAKE” forprompting the driver to brake the vehicle 110 when the vehicle 110approaches too closely to the preceding vehicle.

As shown in FIG. 10B, the second liquid crystal display unit 118 bcomprises a display element 122 disposed in a right side area of thedisplay surface of the second liquid crystal display unit 118 b, adisplay element 124 disposed to the left of the display element 122, anddisplay elements 126, 128 disposed to the left of the display element124.

The display element 122 displays vehicle speed, and the display element124 displays information concerning whether the IHCC system in operationhas detected the preceding vehicle or not. The display element 126displays (1) information of whether the IHCC system is in operation, (2)information of whether the vehicle 110 is approaching a precedingvehicle, and (3) information of whether a radar transmitting/receivingunit is dirty or smeared and thus is incapable of detecting thepreceding vehicle. The display element 128 displays a preset vehiclespeed when the IHCC system is in operation.

Each of the display elements 116 and 120 through 128 comprises atransmissive liquid crystal display element for displaying digitalinformation. The display elements 116, 122, the display element 126, andthe display element 128 for displaying preset vehicle speed, comprisesegmented liquid crystal display elements.

If each of the display elements 116 and 120 through 128 comprises a TNliquid crystal display element, when a controller 142 (see FIG. 11)energizes LEDs 134, 136 to emit light, while also energizing the displayelements 116 and 120 through 128, light emitted from the LEDs 134, 136is blocked by the display elements 116 and 120 through 128. As a result,the driver observing the first meter cluster panel 114 is unable tovisually recognize indications on the display elements 116 and 120through 128.

When the controller 142 energizes LEDs 134, 136 to emit light, whilede-energizing the display elements 116 and 120 through 128, lightemitted from the LEDs 134, 136 is transmitted through the displayelements 116 and 120 through 128 and is radiated outwardly. Therefore,the driver observing the first meter cluster panel 114 is able tovisually recognize indications on the display elements 116 and 120through 128.

In the first meter cluster panel 114, the speed of the vehicle 110 isdisplayed as first information indicative of a status of the vehicle 110by the display elements 116, 122. The information (1), the information(3), and the preset vehicle speed are displayed as second informationfor confirming operational settings of the IHCC system by the displayelements 126, 128. Information indicating that the vehicle 110 isapproaching a preceding vehicle, information indicating that the IHCCsystem has detected the preceding vehicle, and the above-describedinformation (2), are displayed as third information given to the driverby the display elements 120, 124, 126.

As shown in FIG. 11, the first liquid crystal display unit 118 a and thesecond liquid crystal display unit 118 b are fixedly mounted onto abaseboard 130 by support members 132 a, 132 b. A plurality of LEDs 134for emitting white light, and an LED 136 for emitting amber light, aredisposed on the surface of the baseboard 130 inside of the supportmembers 132 a, 132 b. A wall 138 extends from the baseboard 130 to thesecond liquid crystal display unit 118 b, with a clearance 140 remainingbetween the tip end of the wall 138 and the second liquid crystaldisplay unit 118 b.

As shown in FIG. 11, some of the LEDs 134 are positioned on the rightside of the wall 138, and other LEDs 134, and the LED 136, arepositioned on the left side of the wall 138. As shown in FIG. 12B, thewall 138 divides the display element 120 and the display element 122from each other, as viewed from the second liquid crystal display unit118 b (see FIG. 11) toward the baseboard 130.

When the controller 142 energizes the TN display elements 116 and 124through 128 (see FIGS. 10A and 10B), while also energizing the LEDs 134on the right side of the wall 138 and the LED 136 on the left side ofthe wall 138, white light emitted from the LEDs 134 on the right side ofthe wall 138 passes only through the display element 122 and is radiatedoutwardly, and amber light emitted from the LED 136 on the left side ofthe wall 138 passes only through the display element 120 and is radiatedoutwardly. As a result, the display element 116 displays “100 km/h”, forexample, in white characters, while the display element 120 displays“BRAKE”, for example, in amber characters. Therefore, the first metercluster panel 114 displays the display pattern shown in FIG. 12B.

The driver can thus recognize that the present speed of the vehicle 110is 100 km/h, and that the vehicle 110 needs to be braked, because thevehicle 110 is approaching a preceding vehicle.

Since the wall 138 is disposed between the LEDs 134 that emit whitelight and the LED 136 that emits amber light, white light emitted fromthe LEDs 134 is prevented from passing through the display element 120,while amber light emitted from the LED 136 is prevented from passingthrough the display element 122.

As shown in FIG. 11, the controller 142 is disposed on the surface ofthe baseboard 130 outside of the support member 132 b. The controller142 controls energization of the display elements 116 and 120 through128 (see FIGS. 10A and 10B), as well as energization of the LEDs 134,136, such that the display elements 116, 120 and 122 through 128simultaneously display the first information, and the second informationor the third information, which are required by the driver of thevehicle 110, in a non-overlapping manner.

Specifically, the controller 142 controls the display elements 116 and120 through 128 (see FIGS. 10A and 10B), as well as the LEDs 134, 136(see FIG. 11), in order to display the display patterns shown in FIGS.12A through 12C, for example.

FIG. 12A shows a display pattern, which displays only the vehicle speedas first information on the display element 116. FIG. 12B shows adisplay pattern, which displays the vehicle speed as first informationon the display element 122, and also displays information for promptingthe driver to brake the vehicle 110 as third information on the displayelement 120. FIG. 12C shows a display pattern, which displays thevehicle speed as first information on the display element 122, displaysinformation indicating that the vehicle 110 is approaching a precedingvehicle as third information on the display element 124, and alsodisplays the preset vehicle speed for the vehicle 110 on the displayelement 128.

A comparison of FIGS. 12A through 12C reveals that the vehicle speed,serving as the first information, is displayed in a large size in FIG.12A, but is displayed in a small size in FIGS. 12B and 12C, so as not tooverlap the second information and third information. In FIGS. 12B and12C, the first information, together with the second information or thethird information, are disposed next to each other.

As shown in FIG. 9, a second meter cluster panel 144 is also disposed onthe instrument panel 112. The second meter cluster panel 144 ispositioned inside of a steering wheel 143 as viewed from the perspectiveof the driver. The second meter cluster panel 144 comprises a tachometer146 disposed centrally on the display surface, for displaying enginerotational speed of the vehicle 110 as analog indications, a shiftindicator 148 for displaying the speed reduction ratio of thetransmission (not shown) of the vehicle 110, an odometer and trip meter150 for displaying mileage of the vehicle 110, and a temperature gauge152 for displaying the temperature outside of the vehicle 110. Thetachometer 146 is disposed centrally on a panel 154, which serves as thedisplay surface of the second meter cluster panel 144. The odometer andtrip meter 150, and the temperature gauge 152, are disposed injuxtaposed relation to each other below the tachometer 146. The shiftindicator 148 is disposed on the right side of the tachometer 146.

The vehicular display device (first meter cluster panel) 114 accordingto the present embodiment, and the vehicle 110 which incorporates thevehicular display device 114 therein, are basically constructed asdescribed above. Operations of the vehicular display device (first metercluster panel) 114, along with the vehicle 110, shall be described belowwith reference to FIGS. 9 through 12C.

Operations of the first meter cluster panel 114, for changingindications on the first meter cluster panel 114 from the displaypattern shown in FIG. 12A to the display pattern shown in FIG. 12B or12C when the vehicle-to-vehicle distance between the vehicle 110 and thepreceding vehicle becomes smaller than the preset distance in the IHCCsystem, shall be described below. It is assumed that each of the displayelements 116 and 120 through 128 comprises a TN liquid crystal displayelement.

First, operation of the first meter cluster panel 114, for displayingthe display pattern shown in FIG. 12A, i.e., operation of the firstmeter cluster panel 114 when the vehicle-to-vehicle distance between thevehicle 110 and the preceding vehicle is the preset distance in the IHCCsystem, shall be described below.

The controller 142 (see FIG. 11) energizes the display elements 120through 128 (see FIGS. 10A and 10B) while also energizing all of theLEDs 134 on the baseboard 130. White light emitted from the LEDs 134passes through only the display element 116 and is radiated outwardly.The display element 116 displays “100 km/h”, for example, in whitecharacters. As a consequence, the driver can recognize that, the currentspeed of the vehicle 110 is 100 km/h.

Next, operation of the first meter cluster panel 114, while the IHCCsystem is in operation, for changing indications on the first metercluster panel 114 from the display pattern shown in FIG. 12A to thedisplay pattern shown in FIG. 12B, when the vehicle-to-vehicle distancebetween the vehicle 110 (see FIG. 9) and the preceding vehicle becomessmaller than the preset distance in the IHCC system, shall be describedbelow.

The IHCC system judges that the vehicle speed needs to be lowered, andthat the vehicle-to-vehicle distance needs to be increased up to thepreset distance. The IHCC system outputs a signal to the controller 142for prompting the driver to brake the vehicle 110 (see FIG. 11). Basedon the input signal, the controller 142 energizes the LEDs 134 on theright side of the wall 138 as well as the LED 136 on the left side ofthe wall 138, while also energizing the display elements 116 and 124through 128 (see FIGS. 10A and 10B).

White light emitted from the LEDs 134 on the right side of the wall 138passes only through the display element 122 and is radiated outwardly.The display element 122 displays “100 km/h”, for example, in whitecharacters. Amber light emitted from the LED 136 on the left side of thewall 138 passes only through the display element 120 and is radiatedoutwardly. The display element 120 displays “BRAKE”, for example, inamber characters. As a result, the driver can recognize that the currentspeed of the vehicle 110 is 100 km/h and that the vehicle 110 needs tobe braked because the vehicle 110 is approaching the preceding vehicle.

Now, operation of the first meter cluster panel 114, while the IHCCsystem is in operation, for changing indications on the first metercluster panel 114 from the display pattern shown in FIG. 12A to thedisplay pattern shown in FIG. 12C, so as to inform the driver that thepreceding vehicle is running ahead of the vehicle 110 (see FIG. 9),shall be described.

The IHCC system outputs a signal to the controller 142 indicating thatthe IHCC system is in operation, and that the preceding vehicle isrunning ahead of the vehicle 110 (see FIG. 11). Based on the inputsignal, the controller 142 energizes all of the LEDs 134 while alsoenergizing the display elements 116, 120 (see FIG. 10A).

White light emitted from the LEDs 134 passes only through the displayelements 122 through 128 and is radiated outwardly. The display element122 displays “100 km/h”, for example, in white characters. The displayelement 124 displays a vehicle figure, representing the precedingvehicle, in white. The display element 128 displays “100 km/h” as thepreset vehicle speed in the IHCC system in white characters. As aresult, the driver can recognize that (1) the present speed of thevehicle 110 is 100 km/h, (2) the preceding vehicle is running ahead ofthe vehicle 110, (3) the IHCC system is in operation, and (4) the presetspeed of the vehicle 110 in the IHCC system is 100 km/h.

As described above, the vehicular display device (first meter clusterpanel) 114 according to the present embodiment, and the vehicle 110 thatincorporates the vehicular display device 114, simultaneously displaythe first information together with the second information or the thirdinformation in a non-overlapping manner. Even when various items ofinformation are displayed, movement of the driver's line of sight iskept relatively small.

The display element 116 of the first liquid crystal display unit 118 aand the display element 122 of the second liquid crystal display unit118 b, which display the first information (vehicle speed), are ofdifferent sizes. While the vehicle speed is being displayed by thedisplay element 116 of the first liquid crystal display unit 118 a, andwhen the display elements 120 and 124 through 126 are operated todisplay the second information or the third information, the controller142 controls the display elements 116 and 120 through 128 together withthe LEDs 134, 136 in order to display the vehicle speed on the displayelement 122. The display element 122 for displaying vehicle speed issmaller in size than the display element 116 for displaying vehiclespeed. The display elements 116 and 120 through 128 can thus be arrangedto display the first, second, and third information, without having toincrease the liquid crystal display sizes of the first liquid crystaldisplay unit 118 a and the second liquid crystal display unit 118 b.

When the first, information, along with the second information or thethird information, are displayed simultaneously by the first liquidcrystal display unit 118 a and the second liquid crystal display unit118 b, the controller 142 controls the display elements 116 and 120through 128 in order to display the first information, together with thesecond information or the third information, next to each other.Therefore, movement of the driver's line of sight is further reduced.

The display elements 116 and 120 through 128 can display othercharacters and figures, as described below, as well as the charactersand figures that have been described above. The display element 124 candisplay a figure indicating that the IHCC system has not detected apreceding vehicle. The display element 126 can display characters “CMSNEAR” indicating that the vehicle 110 is approaching the precedingvehicle and could possibly hit the preceding vehicle from behind,characters “CMS FAR” indicating that the vehicle 110 is approaching thepreceding vehicle, but is not close enough to hit the preceding vehiclefrom behind, characters “IHCC OFF” indicating that the IHCC system isnot in operation, and characters “RADAR SMEARED” indicating that thetransmitting/receiving unit of the radar has become dirty or smeared andthus is incapable of detecting a preceding vehicle.

The display elements 116 and 120 through 128 have been described ascomprising segmented liquid crystal display elements. However, thedisplay elements may also comprise dot-matrix liquid crystal displayelements. In the above description, the LEDs 134 emit white light andthe LED 136 emits amber light. However, the LEDs may be replaced withdifferent LEDs that emit light in other colors.

Although certain preferred embodiments of the present invention havebeen shown and described in detail, it should be understood that variouschanges and modifications may be made therein without departing from thescope of the appended claims.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A vehicular display device comprising: atransmissive first liquid crystal display unit having a plurality ofdisplay elements; a transmissive second liquid crystal display unitsuperposed on said first liquid crystal display unit and having aplurality of display elements; and a controller for controlling saiddisplay elements of said first liquid crystal display unit and saiddisplay elements of said second liquid crystal display unit, so as todisplay information required by a driver of the vehicle, wherein theinformation displayed by said display elements comprises at least firstinformation indicative of a status of said vehicle, second informationfor confirming an operating setting of a vehicle-mounted device on saidvehicle, and third information for indication to said driver, andwherein said controller controls said display elements to selectivelydisplay said information by selectively energizing and de-energizingsaid display elements, and further controls said display elements tosimultaneously display the information in a non-overlapping manner.
 2. Avehicular display device according to claim 1, wherein the displayelement of said first liquid crystal display unit and the displayelement of said second liquid crystal display unit have respectivedifferent sizes for displaying said first information, wherein whilesaid first information is being displayed by the display element ofeither one of said first liquid crystal display unit and said secondliquid crystal display unit, when said second information or said thirdinformation is displayed by the display element of the other one of saidfirst liquid crystal display unit and said second liquid crystal displayunit, said controller controls said display elements so as to displaysaid first information on the display element of said other liquidcrystal display unit, and wherein the display element of said otherliquid crystal display unit for displaying said first information issmaller in size than the display element of said one liquid crystaldisplay unit for displaying said first information.
 3. A vehiculardisplay device according to claim 1, wherein when said firstinformation, and said second information or said third information, aresimultaneously displayed by said first liquid crystal display unit andsaid second liquid crystal display unit, said controller controls saiddisplay elements to display the information next to each other as viewedfrom the perspective of said driver.
 4. A vehicle incorporating thereinthe vehicular display device according to claim 1.